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Presentation skills are important for entrepreneurs and business owners as they are often pitching to new customers or investors and decisions are dependent on the quality of the presentation. The best way to improve is through a course followed by practice and then experience. However, if you do not have time for this process before your next big pitch then hopefully these three tips will help you deliver a successful presentation.“All the great speakers were bad speakers at first” – Ralph Waldo Emerson

Tip 1: ObserveThe best way to improve your presentation skills is by watching and listening to other experienced speakers, either in person (check out our events page), on YouTube or on audio. Make notes on the bits they did well which you would like to emulate. The more you watch of these and picture yourself as the person giving the speech, the more belief in yourself you will have giving you the confidence to stand up at the front and present clearly and positively.

Tip 2: Strong Start The best way to get your presentation going is by giving a strong start. You need to grab your audience’s attention from the start so they do not switch off. If you can, get introduced by the organisers and then confidently walk in the room and make the all-important good first impression. Depending on the size and formality of the group, give strong handshakes at first, maintain eye contact switching between people and use positive body language. Rehearse the beginning part of your speech/presentation the most so when you start, you can roll the beginning straight off your tongue which will get you into the flow of the presentation and show the audience that you are worth listening to.

Tip 3: Plan, Plan and Plan Planning your presentation is key to delivering it successfully. Not only should you plan the actual content of the presentation, tailoring it to your specific audience, but also plan the location and plan yourself to arrive in the best possible way. Some quick areas to watch out for:

Presentation – expect questions and try to pre-answer these as part of the presentation

Location – if necessary test the presentation tools and the volume for all of the audience

You – ensure you arrive with plenty of time, warm up your voice and stay hydrated.

There are many elements to a successful presentation and through practice and experience, and reviewing the success and learning of each one (get a review if you can), you will continue to improve.

Great learning resources are also available including the audiobook ‘Speak to Win’ by Brain Tracy and a great course that we have attended and fully recommend (to be put in touch with this course, email pa@turnerinvest.co.uk with the subject Speaking Course Recommendation).

We hope you have found these tips useful and are able to use them to improve your business and investments. Don’t miss out on future tips - subscribe to the Turner Invest newsletter and follow us on social media.

Thanks, Turner InvestEmpowering People to Live the Life of Their Dreams